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Long time reader, first time poster... help me spend my money.

post #1 of 30
9/9/06 at 11:26pm
Thread Starter 
NONE.
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post #2 of 30
9/9/06 at 11:38pm
Oh dear Lord...

a first time poster that says, "I have about 1000USD to spend..."

Oh goodness...

Well, I'll defer to other Head-fi's for recommendations, but let me be the first to say...wait a sec...now is wher eI would say, "sorry about your wallet"...but I can see that you've already waved that white flag. So instead, welcome.

Just to get you started though...you're not going to want to spend all $1000 on cans, you're going to want a good headphone amp as well. Essentially all high end cans will require a good amp to sound like they should.

If it was me...I'd split it about like this
$400-ish -> Headphone Amp (SR-71 possibly)
$400-600ish -> Headphones
$Extra - Save until you have had the cans for a few weeks, then possibly some different pads or cables

Good Luck!
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post #3 of 30
9/9/06 at 11:43pm
Welcome and sorry abotu your wallet... First of all, Get out and demo stuff. $1000 ain't chump change and IMHO at that level it really is a matter of personal preference... more so than whats technically good / bad.

Although... with PC / MP3 as your source there are some cans that IMHO would not be worth your while, DT880 and SA5k (but then again thats my oppinion). I found both to be brutally revealing and really do need a clean source to do them justice... IMHO of course.

With PC as your source I'm thinking you should go for a groovy, musical setup... rather than something thats accurate or super-detail revealing.

Used RS1/MS-Pro or new RS2 and amp with a PPX, darkvoice or earmax Pro?

HD600 amp with a well made M^3. You might have enough $$$ for a recable too. IMHO the cable is the HD600's bigest weakness.

I really liked the K701 when I demo'd it with my earmax. Such a fun, warm synnergy.

Good Luck!!
Garrett
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post #4 of 30
9/10/06 at 12:17am
Quote:
Originally Posted by ryan schaaf
Hey all,

I have been reading the forums here for a long time, waiting for the perfect moment to jump in and get my feet wet in all the head-fi goodness.

I guess this is the best time as I have about a grand to spend. I have recently become aware I will not be that guy in the Martian Logan or B&W ads, kicking back to relax listening to my 11,000 doller speakers any time soon.

I am under the impression that fantastic audio can be achived thru headphones for a fraction of the cost of expensive monitors.

ABOUT ME: I listen to music on my iMac (lampshade G4) they are all ripped at 320KBPS AAC or AIFF. I listen mainly to Dave Matthews, David Gray, Moby, and more mellow layed back acousitcal stuff. I do have some Jurassic5, Massive Attack and Yo Yo Ma. My musical tastes are generaly broad, but no hip-hop or country. I am listening from my desk, chair, or around the room, but its quiet. Im currently listening to Senn. HD555s un-amped, direct from the Mac.

WHAT I WANT: I have about 1000USD to spend and im looking mainly for an amp and some nice "cans" as you all say. I have to say that the AKG K701s have sparked my interest as of late. I hear nothing but good things about them. The beyerdynamic 990s (right?) are supposedly good too. Now, in the land of amps.... I know nothing, not a thing. I have heard some terms spouted about crossovers and DACs and what nots, but I honestly have to say im not sure what is being said. I have tried to do some research, but people allways assume you know whats going on when they explain things. I have looked at Headroom amps, and Meier amps.

Ok.
there it is.
I would appriciate any and all help/knowladge that you guys are willing to give.

thanks
ryan
For starters, you can pick up a pair of DT990 pro for 179.00 & B&H..Check the thread in this forum.They retail for 489.00, but sell for 400.00..

far as amps go.. Are you looking for a portable or stand alone? For portable I would recommend the SR71, Super Macro 4, orginal masters, Portaphile Maxxed, Hornet modded..

Stand alone: Tube amps are ptretty big here.. They have characterstics that only Tubes can provide. There is a sticky on this subject in the amp section.. Tube amps..Woo3. MF CanX3. EC-1. Little Dot 2+ & little dot 3.. For non tube..CA's VHP-1, Gilmore lite, Headroomd desktop amp are really good.

I would recommend a DAC too..But you might want to just start out with phones & a good amp first.. To be honest I snubbed my nose at DACS when I was noob.. Now I realies they are very important for great sound quality..
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post #5 of 30
9/10/06 at 12:30am
My $0.02:

I concur with Stangs55's breakdown for the most part. But I would add that improving the source should be where the extra money he speaks of goes to.

I'm not at all familiar with Mac's so I don't know how to advise you, but we have a great forum dedicate to computers as sources, you can certainly get help there.

So you spend ~ $400 on an amp. You can't go wrong with RSA, in that price range Ray is going to be hard to beat.

You can get some pretty nice cans for $300 - $400, I'm listening to some HD-650's right now that I got for around that figure.

That leaves you with ~ $200 to upgrade the sound out of your computer. I know for sure that PC sound cards or USB DAC's can be had in that price range, but I'm not certain if the same holds true in the Mac world. I suspect it does, but you're better off going to our computer forum for more specific advice.

Good luck, welcome to the forum, and sorry about your wallet!
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post #6 of 30
9/10/06 at 12:32am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by kramer5150
Used RS1/MS-Pro or new RS2 and amp with a PPX, darkvoice or earmax Pro?

HD600 amp with a well made M^3. You might have enough $$$ for a recable too. IMHO the cable is the HD600's bigest weakness.
Could you explain what all that means...?

I understand HD600 is Senn. but the M^3... I dunno what that is.

what is a RS1/MS-Pro... RS2? PPX? Darkvoice? earmax pro?

help too many letters!
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post #7 of 30
9/10/06 at 12:36am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by nelamvr6

That leaves you with ~ $200 to upgrade the sound out of your computer. I know for sure that PC sound cards or USB DAC's can be had in that price range, but I'm not certain if the same holds true in the Mac world. I suspect it does...

Unfortunatly that is not the case with the current model of mac i have... its a dome with a monitor attatched to the top, and as far as i know, has no upgradeability to the soundcard... what kind of source would you recomend that is NOT computer related?

anyone have anymore opinions on AKGs (701s) ?
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post #8 of 30
9/10/06 at 12:37am
Quote:
Originally Posted by ryan schaaf
Could you explain what all that means...?

I understand HD600 is Senn. but the M^3... I dunno what that is.

what is a RS1/MS-Pro... RS2? PPX? Darkvoice? earmax pro?

help too many letters!
the RS-1 is a high end grado. its made of wood

the MS-Pro is the Alessandro version of the RS-1. it has a different sound but looks pretty much the same. they can be purchased new from only herehttp://www.alessandro-products.com/headphones.html

the RS-2 is the little brother of the RS-1. like the rs-1 and ms-pro, its a woodie
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post #9 of 30
9/10/06 at 12:41am
Quote:
Originally Posted by ryan schaaf
Unfortunatly that is not the case with the current model of mac i have... its a dome with a monitor attatched to the top, and as far as i know, has no upgradeability to the soundcard... what kind of source would you recomend that is NOT computer related?

anyone have anymore opinions on AKGs (701s) ?
That's where a USB DAC would come in, it would allow you to improve the sound capabilities of your computer via an external solution.

Do Mac's have USB ports? I would not be surprised if Firewire DAC's were available, but I don't know.
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post #10 of 30
9/10/06 at 12:44am
Quote:
Originally Posted by feh1325
the RS-1 is a high end grado. its made of wood

the MS-Pro is the Alessandro version of the RS-1. it has a different sound but looks pretty much the same. they can be purchased new from only herehttp://www.alessandro-products.com/headphones.html

the RS-2 is the little brother of the RS-1. like the rs-1 and ms-pro, its a woodie
Unfortunately those cans will eat up a LOT of your $1000.

I love the RS-1's, but you will probably get more bang/buck by starting off with a more ballanced approach: DAC, amp, cans.

Just my opinion. YMMV
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post #11 of 30
9/10/06 at 12:51am
Quote:
Originally Posted by ryan schaaf
Could you explain what all that means...?

I understand HD600 is Senn. but the M^3... I dunno what that is.

what is a RS1/MS-Pro... RS2? PPX? Darkvoice? earmax pro?

help too many letters!
M^3 is a hybrid amp SS/Tube, or straight tube amp..Goes great with the Sen 600/650.. Darkvoice & earmax pro are other amps that ppl sem to like here..
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post #12 of 30
9/10/06 at 1:27am
Thread Starter 
How bout the Grado RS1 headphones and the RA1 amp? decent combo?

yeah the mac has firewire and USB outs.

Could you provide a link to these amps the M^3 and darkvoice?

the 1000 is flexable within several hundered... I was just trying to find a nice round number if it ends up being 1200... oh well.

what other sources should i look at? CD players? just normal ones, because Ive seen 10,000 dollar cd players....

I for sure want an amp and headphones... and honestly, I have some Senns now, and I dont like the "in your head" sound, others have said that Senns have that sound too (based on my reading here) I have heard the grado sr225s and they sounded nice... just not sure of the comfort level with them...

what about the GS 1000s? what kind of amp would you need to make them worth while?
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post #13 of 30
9/10/06 at 1:31am
Quote:
Originally Posted by kool bubba ice
M^3 is a hybrid amp SS/Tube, or straight tube amp..Goes great with the Sen 600/650.. Darkvoice & earmax pro are other amps that ppl sem to like here..
What?
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post #14 of 30
9/10/06 at 1:31am
Quote:
Originally Posted by ryan schaaf
How bout the Grado RS1 headphones and the RA1 amp? decent combo?

yeah the mac has firewire and USB outs.

Could you provide a link to these amps the M^3 and darkvoice?

the 1000 is flexable within several hundered... I was just trying to find a nice round number if it ends up being 1200... oh well.

what other sources should i look at? CD players? just normal ones, because Ive seen 10,000 dollar cd players....

I for sure want an amp and headphones... and honestly, I have some Senns now, and I dont like the "in your head" sound, others have said that Senns have that sound too (based on my reading here) I have heard the grado sr225s and they sounded nice... just not sure of the comfort level with them...

what about the GS 1000s? what kind of amp would you need to make them worth while?
http://www.musicdirect.com/products/...ku=AMUFIXCANV3

I think you need to supply your own power cord if buying the Xcan^3 Some makers only ship their amp leaving the buyer to supply their own power cord.. The Darkvoice is sold overseas..Don't think there is a website for it..But there is a user review with details on how to purchase in the amp forum..
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post #15 of 30
9/10/06 at 12:49pm
Thread Starter 
Anyone have any thoughts on the RS1s with the Grado RA1 amp?

is that a decent amp or should I be looking elsewhere?

Also any thoughts on the GS1000 or some used K1000s?

(I like the looks of the K1000s, but am not sure what kind of equipment would be needed as a source/amp for those.
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